China has made it harder to export rare earth minerals, which are very important.
China has dramatically escalated the ongoing technology war by formalizing stringent export controls on rare earths and other materials critical for advanced manufacturing. This move goes far beyond simple trade tactics; it weaponizes Beijing’s near-monopoly on these vital technological ingredients and represents a direct counter to US measures aimed at crippling China’s chip sector.
Beijing processes around 90% of the world’s rare earths, which are essential components in everything from high-efficiency electric car motors and smartphones to advanced military hardware and jet engines. By controlling this resource, China gains a powerful bargaining chip just ahead of the expected meeting between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and US counterpart Donald Trump.
Formalizing the Digital Blockade
Thursday’s announcement by the Commerce Ministry formalizes previous restrictions. Under the new rules:
Foreign companies must secure Chinese government approval to export any products containing even small amounts of rare earths.
They must provide a detailed explanation of the intended final use of the material.
Similar strict export controls were also placed on lithium batteries and specific forms of graphite, further tightening China’s grip on the global tech supply chain.
Beijing explicitly states these regulations are intended to “safeguard national security.” The main target is clearly overseas defence manufacturers particularly those in the US who rely heavily on these crucial Chinese materials for weapons systems. Licenses are now highly unlikely to be issued to arms producers and certain chip industry firms.
Biopolitics: Controlling the Means of Survival
Trade expert Alex Capri notes that these regulations are deliberately “specifically timed” to coincide with the Xi-Trump summit. This strategy mirrors the US’s own aggressive actions. By limiting access to rare earths, Beijing targets key vulnerabilities in the very foundations of Western military and electronics manufacturing.
This control over “national survival mechanisms” the ability to produce chips, weapons, and electric infrastructure is a classic move of biopolitics. By restricting the export of both the materials and the technology used to process and magnetize rare earths, China is asserting sovereign control over global technological progress.
The new rules also restrict the export of the technology used for:
1. Mining, smelting, and separation processes.
2. Manufacturing magnetic materials.
3. Recycling rare earths from secondary resources.
China is now restricting rare earth exports, mirroring US actions that blocked chip-making equipment sales to China. This move shifts the tech-geopolitical battle from manufacturing control to raw material control, impacting chips and AI systems.
